Two Yukon women’s hockey teams have secured berths and a little financial help to the Canadian Hockey Enterprises’ Tournament of Champions this fall.

The Yukon Gold, comprised of players in their 20s and 30s, won the Senior A Women’s division at the Banff Cup in Banff, Alta. last weekend, while Team Yukon, with over-35’s players, won the women’s Senior B division.

The Tournament of Champions brings together the best adult recreational hockey teams in North America for one of three tournaments in Banff, Montreal or Las Vegas.

Every season there’s usually at least one women’s team that travels, said Yukon Gold team representative Candice MacEachen. In the past, they’ve played in Victoria, Calgary and Anchorage and it was a group decision to head to Banff this year.

Normally a coach for younger players, MacEachen was happy to be able to play alongside some of the skaters she has coached in the past. The Yukon Gold roster included: Rianne Radmacher, MacEachen, Angela Burke, Ashtyn Sandulak, Katie Vanderstelt, Adrianne Dewhurst, Jeanne Lassen, Lynsey Keaton, Tshayla Nothstein, Sadie Whitelaw and Kira Beukeboom.

They faced the Bull Frogs in their first game.

It was a really good game, said MacEachen, back and forth and “pretty chippy.”

MacEachen, Dewhurst and Burke scored for the Yukon Gold and they tied the Bull Frogs 3-3.

In their second game of the tournament Saturday morning, they faced the Vagabonds.

The team featured more beginner players and the Yukon Gold won 3-0 with goals from Burke, Dewhurst and Nothstien.

Later that afternoon, they took on the Calgary Ice Hawks.

The game was more evenly matched and the Yukon Gold would have to at least tie the game to advance to the finals.

“They had some good chances, we had some good chances,” said MacEachen. “We just kept playing defensively.”

They held on to tie 1-1 with their goal coming from Dewhurst.

Instead of exploring the township, which is nestled into the Rockie Mountains, they had a team lunch, napped and prepared for the final against the Ice Hawks.

Up by two, the Ice Hawks came within one. Then the Yukon Gold scored an insurance goal. but the Ice Hawks clawed back within one to make it 3-2.

The Ice Hawks pulled their goalie with one minute left and the Yukon Gold were inches away from making it 4-2, but an Ice Hawks stick got in the way.

“We held on the last while to keep the win,” said MacEachen.

The goals in the final came from Burke, Dewhurst and Sandulak.

“It was a fun tourney and we were very happy with the outcome,” said MacEachen.

“We wanted to play some good hockey and we got that.”

The Over 35’s Team Yukon also fared well in their division, going undefeated through the tournament.

“It was awesome,” said team captain Jessica Pumphrey. “We were pretty dominant.”

She said the team likely could have competed in the other division, but with it being their first trip to the tournament, they didn’t know what to expect.

There’s a lot of hockey experience on Team Yukon. Their roster included: Crystal Stewart, Meredith Young, Chase Blodgett, Carolyn Relf, Pumphrey, Laura Grieve, Sherry Lee, Anna Peacock, Danielle Hodgson, Cheryl Rivest, Sue Hamilton, Stephanie Hedley, Nikki Belanger and Kirsti Muller.

Rivest was named player of the game for their first match, while Relf, Pumphrey and Belanger were named players of the game for the subsequent match-ups.

Pumphrey said that the elevation certainly affected their skating shifts. On the bench they were “just sucking wind.”

Although with the game’s official round-robin scores: 7-1, 7-2, 7-0, you’d never know.

“We’re a stacked team,” said Pumphrey. “But we weren’t really sure what we were getting into.”

While their wins were lopsided – their closest being the 3-0 final win – the beer donated to the team by Yukon Brewing, which they brought to their opponent’s dressing rooms, certainly helped with the taste of defeat.

The team also looked great in new matching socks donated by Jill Polack & Co, said Pumphrey.

They were able to travel between Calgary and Banff with Hvactech’s donation for rental vans and Air North comped their equipment bags.

“We’re really lucky in the Yukon,” said Pumphrey, referencing the U.S. women’s hockey team’s recent battle with USA Hockey over equitable wages.

Now the teams just have to decide where they’ll be going this fall to play.

Both team captains said they were leaning towards Montreal.